Shloka 6
Somadatta’s Kṣātra-Dharma Accusation; Night Combat, Māyā, and the Fall of Ghaṭotkaca
Droṇa-parva, Adhyāya 131
भीमसेनदवाग्नेस्तु मम पुत्रांस्तृणोपमान् | प्रधक्षतो रणमुखे के5तिष्ठन्नग्रतो नरा:,भीमसेन दावानलके समान हैं और मेरे पुत्र तिनकोंके समान। उन्हें जला डालनेकी इच्छावाले भीमसेनके सामने युद्धके मुहानेपर कौन-कौन-से वीर खड़े हुए?
bhīmasenadāvāgnestu mama putrāṃstṛṇopamān | pradhakṣato raṇamukhe ke tiṣṭhannagrato narāḥ ||
Dhṛtarāṣṭra said: “Bhīmasena is like a raging forest-fire, while my sons are like mere blades of grass. When Bhīma, intent on burning them down, stands at the very mouth of battle, which warriors dared to stand before him?”
धघतयाट्र उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the moral psychology of war: adharma and misrule culminate in fear and helplessness. Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s comparison—Bhīma as a forest-fire and his sons as straw—underscores how unchecked aggression and unjust choices can make one’s own side vulnerable, while also pointing to the kṣatriya ideal of standing firm before overwhelming force.
Dhṛtarāṣṭra questions Sañjaya about the battlefield situation: as Bhīma advances with the intent to destroy the Kauravas, the blind king anxiously asks which warriors were able to stand in front of him at the battle’s forefront.